SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12, 2019 | 9A
Summer
Home Improvement
Dishing on popular grilling methods
G
rilling is not only a way to prepare
meals; for many, it’s also a passion.
Flavor, lifestyle and entertainment are
the prime reasons people grill.
“Barbecuing is no longer just a
pastime, but an integral part of the
North American lifestyle,” said Jack
Goldman, president and CEO of
Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association
(HPBA). “We expect consumers’ pas-
sion for flavorful food and entertain-
ing their family and friends to contin-
ue to increase.”
The HPBA’s 2017 industry survey
found that 70 percent of adults in the
United States own a grill or smoker.
Those numbers are even greater in
Canada, where 80 percent of adults
have a grill to call their own.
When it comes time to replace or
upgrade a grill, the age-old question
remains: Do I choose a charcoal- or
gas-fueled grill? That decision can
spark heated debate among grillmas-
ters, but for many it may boil down to
a number of factors.
Cost
Charcoal grills tend to be less ex-
pensive than gas grills. The food and
beverage trend reporter Chowhound
indicates that a low-end grill can be
purchased for around $25. However,
deluxe charcoal kettles and other char-
coal alternatives tend to be consider-
ably more expensive. The most popu-
lar gas grills may cost anywhere from
$130 to $300. Those who prefer more
options and high-end offerings can pay to worry about running out of gas. Gas
between $800 and $1,500.
fuel tends to be cheaper than charcoal
and easier to clean, and some gas grills
High heat searing
come with side burners that enable
When cooking expensive, well-mar- cooks to prepare side dishes right next
bled steaks or other dishes that benefit to their grilled entrees.
from high-heat searing, charcoal grills
seem to outperform gas ones, at least
Portability
according to the experts behind The
For those who want to grill at home
Sweethome, a product recommen- and on the go, then a charcoal grill is
dation site owned by The New York the right investment. A charcoal grill
Times Company. That isn’t to say gas can be brought to a campsite or a park
counterparts can’t come very close. without going to great lengths.
And deploying a cast-iron pan on top
of the grates can help concentrate the
Clean-up
heat and allow the meat to cook in its
Gas grills generally are easier to
own fat.
clean, and home chefs do not have to
wrangle much ash or leftover coals
Convenience
once they’re done cooking.
There is no doubt that gas grills are a
marvel in regard to convenience, espe-
Charcoal and gas grills each have
cially when they are directly tied into their merits. It is up to consumers to
a home’s propane or natural gas sys- decide which features reign supreme as
tem. In such instances, one never has they shop for new grills.
Did you
know?
Weeding is a chore few gardeners relish. Weeds can seemingly
pop up overnight. And when left to their own devices, weeds can
quickly grow out of control. There are a few key tips to weeding
that can make the process easier. First off, start with wet soil.
Choose to weed after it rains, as wet soil makes it easier to pull
the full weed, including the root, out of the ground. Removing
the weed all the way down to its root prevents it from growing
back. If there’s no rain in the forecast, water the garden before
attempting to remove weeds. If the ground is compacted and
you’re weeding in a pinch, at least remove the head of the weed
to prevent seeds from spreading and starting new weed growth.
Prevent the hazard
of overloaded circuits
A home is a safe hav-
en for its residents. No
matter what’s going on at
school or the office, many
people know they can re-
lax in comfort and safety
when they arrive home at
the end of a day.
Safety at home is some-
thing that can be taken for
granted until it’s too late.
The National Fire Pro-
tection Association notes
that each year more than
47,000 home fires in the
United States are caused
by electrical failure or
malfunction.
Overloaded electrical
circuits are a frequent
culprit in residential fires.
Fortunately, overloaded
circuits are preventable.
According to the Elec-
trical Safety Foundation
International (ESFI), the
following are some poten-
tial indicators that circuits
are overloaded.
• Flickering, blinking
or dimming lights
• Frequently
tripped
circuit breakers or blown
fuses
• Warm or discolored
wall plates
• Cracking, sizzling or
buzzing from receptacles
• Burning odor coming
from receptacles or wall
switches
• Mild shock or tingle
from appliances, recepta-
cles or switches.
Learning to recognize
the signs of overloaded
circuits is an important
step in making homes
safe, as the NFPA notes
that home fires contribute
to hundreds of deaths and
more than 1,500 injuries
each year. Such fires also
hit homeowners in their
pocketbooks, causing an
estimated $1.4 billion in
property damage annu-
ally.
Prevention is anoth-
er key component when
safeguarding a home and
its residents from fires
sparked by electrical fail-
ures of malfunctions. The
ESFI offers the following
tips to prevent electrical
overloads.
• Never use extension
cords or multi-outlet con-
verters for appliances.
• All major appliances
should be plugged direct-
ly into a wall receptacle
outlet. Only one heat-pro-
ducing appliance should
be plugged into a recep-
tacle outlet at any given
time.
• Consider adding new
outlets to your home.
Heavy reliance on exten-
sion cords indicates that
your home does not have
enough outlets. Bring in
a qualified electrician to
inspect your home to de-
termine if more outlets
are necessary.
• Recognize that pow-
er strips only add addi-
tional outlets; they do
not change the amount
of power being received
from the outlet.
Fires sparked by elec-
trical circuit overload
pose a significant threat.
Thankfully, such fires are
preventable. Learn more
at www.esfi.org.
Restore rusty tools
Many people may be
tempted to discard rusty
tools that have gone unused
and sat in a garage or shed
for a significant period of
time. But tools encrusted
with rust do not need to be
relegated to the trash bin,
nor do gardeners have to toil
for hours scraping and sand-
ing off the rust.
There’s a much easier way
to restore rusty tools that re-
lies on a common household
ingredient: vinegar. Pour
vinegar into a deep enough
vessel to submerge the met-
al part of the tool. Soak the
tool overnight. The next
day, use a scouring pad to
rub off the rust. If the tool
is too big to fit into a can or
bucket, simply wrap it with
a vinegar-soaked rag and
cover the whole tool with
After all the rust is gone,
a tightly secured plastic bag. rinse the tool in cool water
Follow the same procedure and dry thoroughly. Then
the next day.
return it to regular usage.
Identify & treat a garden mole problem
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Lawn and garden enthusi-
asts often must address un-
foreseen issues when tending
to their lawns. Weeds can be a
blight, and drought can com-
promise the look and integri-
ty of a lawn.
Another, more deceptive
potential adversary is moles.
After a spring and summer
spent tending to their gar-
dens, no homeowner wants
to have their hard work com-
promised by moles.
“The Old Farmer’s Al-
manac” says that moles are
ground-dwelling
insecti-
vores that feast on insects in
the soil. Moles grow to be
roughly six to eight inches
long and have gray or black,
velvety fur. Their snouts are
slender and hairless, and they
have very small eyes and ears.
Their large front feet have
long claws that scoop dirt out
of the way like a garden hoe.
Even though moles are
more likely to snack on
grubs, worms and beetles
than plants, they damage
gardens and lawns because of
their underground tunneling
behavior. Moles make subter-
ranean channels throughout
the yard in search of food.
Some of the telltale signs
include sprouted mounds
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of displaced soil, holes and
raised burrows and hills.
Tunneling can separate roots
from soil, eventually killing
vegetation in the process, ac-
cording to the home and gar-
den experts at BobVila.com.
There are various ways to
address mole problems in a
lawn or garden. Some profes-
sionals may recommend fu-
migants, home remedies and
repellents. But these methods
are not always effective, ac-
cording to Better Homes &
Gardens. Using insecticides
can rid the lawn of some of
the foods that moles dine
upon, ultimately discourag-
ing them from coming onto
a property. However, many
experts agree that trapping
is the only reliable means of
stopping these creatures.
Homeowners can trap
moles humanely by catching
the mole in the act. This in-
volves waiting for a mole to
start channeling, then using
two shovels to block egress
on either side of its path.
The mole can be removed
to a box and relocated.
There also are various mole
and gopher traps available
for sale that operate with
spring-loaded snares. Indi-
viduals should check if trap-
ping moles is legal where
they live.
For more information re-
garding moles, visit www.
almanac.com or www.
bobvila.com.